McLaren Racing has locked in its latest piece of the puzzle, confirming that reigning FIA Formula 2 Champion Leonardo Fornaroli will drive for its newly formed Hypercar outfit in the 2027 FIA World Endurance Championship. That is a massive statement of intent for a famous British brand preparing to return to the top tier of long-distance racing for the first time since its iconic outright victory at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1995 with the F1 GTR.
Now, the development machine is truly rolling. McLaren has been stacking up testing miles with the new MCL-HY Hypercar, even bringing in 2025 F1 World Champion Lando Norris for a recent outing at Portimão. Meanwhile, the squad is steadily assembling its six-strong driver line-up, which sits two-thirds complete with the arrival of the young Italian alongside earlier recruits Mikkel Jensen, 2024 FIA World Endurance Champion Laurens Vanthoor, and Alex Lynn.
The 21-year-old Italian arrives with a CV that commands absolute respect. By clinching back-to-back FIA Formula 3 and Formula 2 crowns in 2024 and 2025, Fornaroli joined an exclusive club of just four other drivers to achieve that consecutive feat across the junior single-seater ladder. That blistering speed, cool composure, and razor-sharp racecraft naturally earned the Piacenza native a spot on the McLaren Driver Development Programme, anchoring his current duties as the team's Formula 1 reserve driver.
“Joining McLaren Hypercar Team is an incredibly exciting next step in my career, and I’m grateful that my [ongoing] role as McLaren Mastercard Formula 1 Team Reserve Driver has opened up this incredible opportunity,” Fornaroli said. “To represent McLaren in the FIA World Endurance Championship and at the 24 Hours of Le Mans is a huge honour, and I’m ready to give everything as we take on this new challenge together.”
Team Principal James Barclay is equally thrilled to secure the prodigy's signature for the upcoming campaign. “Leo is an exceptional talent – winning Formula 3 is a significant achievement, but to follow that by winning Formula 2 as a rookie underlines his natural ability as one of the most exciting drivers in motorsport,” Barclay noted.
With two-thirds of the roster now announced, McLaren is building a fascinating blend of hardened sportscar veterans and hungry junior talent for its debut WEC season. Testing continues, the machine is taking shape, and the grid for 2027 is getting sharper by the week.
